Club Business
President Dick O’Donnell presided. Pete Beck led the prayer and pledge of allegiance to our flag. Dick mentioned that Anderson Rathbun has a birthday this week. Next Tuesday Trip Durham has the program. His speaker will be Dave Raymond, who will talk about how to have fun during the Covid restrictions.
This day in history had some interesting events, perhaps the most significant being that in 1791 the Bill of Rights was passed. Today’s jokes were, well…
Marta Moos reported that the recent Rotary Packathon was a lot of fun and an opportunity to work together as a club. She said she wished we had more of those sorts of events. Joseph Williams reported that 8 club members showed up, contributing to the 30 who were on hand to pack food. Some Interact club members also participated.
This makes two projects our club organized this month, the other being construction of a ramp at the home of a person who is wheelchair bound. These sorts of projects are great opportunities for club members to grow relationally while doing something worthwhile. The ramp project was completed with help of local Interact Club members from Western Alamance High School.
Meet Kirk Tucker
Kirk Tucker recently moved to Burlington from the Hertford, NC area. He was a part of their Rotary Club for about 11 years, during which time he served as president and became a Paul Harris Fellow. He also attended two international conferences. He told us the believes in Rotary and wishes to become a part of our club. He now resides at the Twin Lakes Community. Before retirement he worked 39 years for Harley-Davidson. Everyone welcomed him and Micah said he would send him a membership application.
Sharing Among Members
Mary Thomas is thrilled that her son will be home for the holidays after being in basic training.
Dick said he would make available a video of a presentation by Craig Weldon, a retired 2-star general who spoke on leadership at this week’s Alamance Leads meeting.
Program: Jim Bryan and Bettina Akukwe – Career Accelerator Program
Bettina opened the program with an excellent 8-minute video all about the program. We learned that CAP is an apprenticeship program that is a partnership between the individual being trained, ACC, state government, and the company doing the training. Students do classwork at the community college and learn practical hands-on skills at the company that hires them. Companies assign mentors to help the student develop more quickly. This program allows the student to earn money while attending school, graduate debt free, and have a job ready for them at graduation.
Jim Bryan, the CEO of Fairystone Fabrics, was a founding member of CAP in 2015. He said one of the big challenges manufacturers face is replacing an aging skilled workforce with properly trained people. CAP speeds up the process. He said eleven companies participate in CAP at present. His company has three apprentices right now, but he said he really needs about ten. The program helps students grow in manufacturing , relational, and team working skills, as well as develop in maturity.
Sam Powell added that the US is late to the apprenticeship party, which had its beginnings in Europe, but we are gaining ground. State funding has increased over the past few years, allowing thousands of students to participate. Community colleges give academic credit for things learned at the workplace. Students who complete the program receive academic credit, a diploma, and workplace credentials that are transferable. ApprenticeshipNC.org is the umbrella organization.
Conclusion
Dick closed the meeting by leading us in reciting the Four Way Test.